Kane County triathlete sues Massage Envy after 2020 sexual assault complaint
Christy Gutowski, Chicago Tribune
7 min read
Nearly two years ago, Christine Schirtzinger lay in a darkened room at a Massage Envy spa in Geneva as a licensed massage therapist whom she trusted worked on her sore muscles.
Schirtzinger, a longtime Ironman triathlete and endurance coach in the western suburbs, said the man had been professional during their sessions in the nearly four years since she became his client.
But according to a Cook County lawsuit she filed Wednesday, that changed when, two-thirds of the way into a two-hour therapeutic massage in December 2020, he sexually assaulted Schirtzinger.
Unbeknownst to her at the time, the lawsuit states, James R. Garrett had a felony theft conviction on his record when he was hired. He later became “known for” using techniques other massage therapists did not, including “being willing to work in the ‘upper inner groin’ area” on his female clients, the lawsuit said.
Schirtzinger’s lawsuit alleges that if Massage Envy had conducted a proper background check and provided adequate supervision and training of Garrett, she would not have been victimized.
“My assault was completely preventable,” Schirtzinger, 51, told the Tribune. “(It) should have never happened because there never should have been a felon in a closed room with me.”
Prosecutors charged Garrett with felony criminal sexual assault shortly after Schirtzinger reported the 2020 incident to Geneva police, court records show. The 41-year-old Genoa man pleaded guilty earlier this year in Kane County to a reduced charge of attempted criminal sexual abuse, a misdemeanor, and received two years’ probation.
He also registered as a convicted sex offender as part of his sentence.
Schirtzinger, of St. Charles, said she supported the plea deal at the time because she was unaware of his past and believed Garrett would never work as a massage therapist again. He voluntarily resigned from Massage Envy and a second job as a massage therapist at an unrelated spa after Schirtzinger reported him, according to police records.
Schirtzinger told the Tribune she later learned Garrett had been convicted of felony theft in May 2003 for an incident in DeKalb County that included filing a false police report. Garrett was placed on 30 months’ probation in that case, court records show.
Schirtzinger is suing Garrett, Massage Envy, and the owner and the manager of the specific spa in the Geneva Commons shopping plaza where she was a member. The 37-count, nearly 80-page lawsuit accuses the defendants of negligence, among other allegations.
The suit alleges Garrett inappropriately touched at least one other Massage Envy client. The woman said he had touched her breasts, her buttocks and her vaginal area during massages, according to the lawsuit and a police report. She did not pursue criminal charges but spoke to a detective as part of the investigation into Schirtzinger’s complaint, the police records said.
The lawsuit also states that Garrett’s “involvement with law enforcement indicates that he was an alleged offender involving a sex offense in 2006.” Schirtzinger’s attorney, Margaret Battersby Black, told the Tribune they learned of the allegation through an open records request to a suburban police department while preparing the lawsuit. Garrett was not charged in that incident, records show.
“Since massage is such an intimate service, Massage Envy and others in the industry have an even greater responsibility to make sure its patrons are safe and that their massage therapists are performing their duties in a professional manner,” said Battersby Black, of the Levin & Perconti law firm.
Garrett did not respond to a phone message seeking comment Wednesday. His criminal attorney said in an email he did not know if Garrett had been served with the lawsuit and that he could not comment further.
With more than 1,150 spas in 49 states, including Illinois, the Massage Envy franchise network purports to be the largest provider of massages and skin care in the United States.
But the chain’s reputation took a hit when BuzzFeed News reported in 2017 that nearly 200 clients had filed lawsuits, police reports and state licensing board complaints against Massage Envy and its employees. Many of the victims alleged that the company and its franchises mishandled or ignored their complaints.
According to its website, Massage Envy responded in late 2017 with a multipart safety plan outlining how it planned to better screen therapists and handle sexual misconduct complaints. The policies include background checks for massage therapists and aestheticians as a condition of hiring and on an annual basis. The company also has partnered with the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, or RAINN.
A Massage Envy spokesperson told the Tribune in an emailed response to questions that the company cannot comment “on pending allegations or litigation involving any independently owned and operated franchised location” but that it is “committed to promoting a safe environment” for its members and guests.
But Schirtzinger alleges the company’s safety plan failed to protect her. A mother of four and a registered nurse, Schirtzinger currently works as a full-time coach. She was a longtime member of Massage Envy, she told the Tribune, because she considered it reputable and safe. Her sessions began with Garrett about four years earlier when she requested a massage therapist who works with high-endurance athletes.
During her massage in late 2020, Schirtzinger said, Garrett had been massaging her hip flexor muscles when he suddenly slipped his fingers beneath her underwear and penetrated her three times in quick succession.
“I immediately told him to stop and he stopped,” she said. “But it was surreal. I couldn’t even comprehend what was happening. I was almost half asleep and I didn’t know how to deal with the situation.”
She lay there, in disbelief, until the session was over and then quickly left the spa. According to her lawsuit and police records, she contacted the Geneva Police Department five days later, after speaking to family, friends and a sexual assault counselor.
“I didn’t even want to say out loud what happened to me,” Schirtzinger told the Tribune. “But I really thought about my daughters — I have two daughters — and I thought about my friends who are athletes who I’m sure go to that massage therapist and I knew this would continue to happen if I stayed silent. And I knew that I couldn’t live with that.”
Garrett initially denied Schirtzinger’s allegation during his police interview. But police said his responses evolved to include “the client is always right” and “if someone says I did it, it happened,” as well as “I would never believe myself,” when asked whether authorities should believe Schirtzinger or him, police records show.
Garrett continued to hold a valid massage therapy license for eight months after his March 2022 conviction in Schirtzinger’s case. The state revoked his license on Nov. 7, according to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
A department spokesperson said the agency received “the first and only complaint” against Garrett in late July, nearly five months after his guilty plea. The complaint was assigned to be investigated but no action was taken until early October, when the Illinois State Police notified state regulators about Garrett’s conviction and sex offender registration.
State law mandates that most sex-related offenses, including crimes requiring sex offender registration, require that the person be automatically barred from holding a massage therapist license. The department has discretion in decisions related to certain other crimes, including theft.
The department began the revocation process against Garrett after the state police’s notification in early October, according to the department spokesperson. Garrett did not request a hearing to contest the action, and his license was revoked Nov. 7.
Schirtzinger told the Tribune one of her attorneys had to prod the state agency to take action. The slow response, she alleged, “put more women at risk.” Schirtzinger said she decided to file the lawsuit and speak out publicly to help raise awareness.
“I want women to know that this can happen,” she said. “I was violated and assaulted in a place that I considered safe.”
